1. Game Decomposition Game objects

2. Getting Started: What To Do, How To Do It
Game Logic Tools
Content Creation and Management Tools
Game Logic
Game Content and Assets
Game Engine
Programming and Support SDKs

3. Motivation Designing a game FOR Development
requires consideration and understanding of all the aspects of creating and implementing it
Lots of people have game Ideas
Some can put their idea into a Design description
Very few see their designs be Developed into real games
Increase your odds
Design so it is easy to Develop

4. Designing a game is designing a system
Game design and development is iterative
Games can be described as
the successive layering of constraints
Games have elements

5. The Creative Process – Define the Product
Consider target audience
Gather feedback from colleagues
Think about core objectives
List the challenges
Will help determine genre
Determine how player will interface
Define unique features, essential to gameplay
Has features been done before? If not, is there a reason why not?
Consider theme (not graphical theme)
Solidify in two- to three-page document

6. Another Set of Parts
A game (design) can be decomposed to parts that are useful in planning and measuring development

7. How this Fits
The following is more applicable to the stages after mockups and early prototype iterations
This decomposition should be considered
before major programming and artwork development begin
after a solid game core has been established

8. Design: Top-Down Design This is TOP-DOWN starts at a high level
and works down into the details
This is TOP-DOWN

9. Development: Bottom-Up
is often a Bottom-Up process
Start Small
Assemble into Big

10. Design FOR Development
Design is Top-Down
Development is Bottom-Up
If the Design can reduce things into the low level asset requirements
Then Development becomes the process of creating and assembling those assets into the game
the success of which can be tracked and measured
there is a clear picture of how and what needs to be developed and by who to achieve the game as designed
organized chaos

11. From the Top Decompose the game into manageable pieces How?
Assets, or game elements, that can be assigned to people to create
How?
Categorize the assets
Similar to how people skills might be categorized

12. Asset Categories

13. Asset Categories

14. Asset Categories

15. Asset Categories

16. Asset Categories

17. Asset Categories

18. Asset Categories

19. Asset Categories

20. Asset List Creation – Top Down
From Big to Small
We have a description of a game
Should include scenes/levels/menus/…
Start with a “big” picture
Break it into smaller pieces
Then smaller pieces
Until you arrive at a “size” that is manageable,
and can be formed into different bigger things (yet similar in nature and style)

21. Asset List Creation – Top Down
From Big to Small
We have a description of a game
Should include scenes/levels/menus/…
Decide on a scene to create
Start with a “big” picture
Break it into smaller pieces
Then smaller pieces
Until you arrive at a “size” that is manageable,
and can be formed into different bigger things (yet similar in nature and style)

22. Asset List Creation – Top Down
From Big to Small
We have a description of a game
Should include scenes/levels/menus/…
Decide on a scene to create
Determine what type of objects are
needed to create that scene
Start with a “big” picture
Break it into smaller pieces
Then smaller pieces
Until you arrive at a “size” that is manageable,
and can be formed into different bigger things (yet similar in nature and style)

23. Asset List Creation – Top Down
From Big to Small
We have a description of a game
Should include scenes/levels/menus/…
Decide on a scene to create
Determine what type of objects are
needed to create that scene
Determine what components we need
to make each object in the selected scene
Start with a “big” picture
Break it into smaller pieces
Then smaller pieces
Until you arrive at a “size” that is manageable,
and can be formed into different bigger things (yet similar in nature and style)

24. Asset List Creation – Top Down
From Big to Small
We have a description of a game
Should include scenes/levels/menus/…
Decide on a scene to create
Determine what type of objects are
needed to create that scene
Determine what components we need
to make each object in the selected scene
Determine what assets are needed to
make each of those components
Start with a “big” picture
Break it into smaller pieces
Then smaller pieces
Until you arrive at a “size” that is manageable,
and can be formed into different bigger things (yet similar in nature and style)

25. Asset List Creation – Top Down
From Big to Small
We have a description of a game
Should include scenes/levels/menus/…
Decide on a scene to create
Determine what type of objects are
needed to create that scene
Determine what components we need
to make each object in the selected scene
Determine what assets are needed to
make each of those components
Start with a “big” picture
Break it into smaller pieces
Then smaller pieces
Until you arrive at a “size” that is manageable,
and can be formed into different bigger things (yet similar in nature and style)
And now we have a list of assets
for ONE scene
Repeat for the other scenes

26. Iterative Rapid Prototyping
More Iterations = Better Game
Iterate as many times as possible
Don’t start implementing until the design/planning is well done
Still possible to go back to design phase after implementation
But minimizes the likelihood

27. Decomposition Process
Decomposing a Game into Scenes is ‘easy’
Scenes are as in theater  “set the scene”
A level is a scene (sometimes multiple scenes)
A secret area is a scene
A start menu can be a scene
A pause screen can be a scene
Objects are also ‘easy’
Things that are in the scene
Each thing is made of re-usable components
Car versus Truck… wheels, doors, headlights, engine

28. Components Versus Assets
Assets are typed/categorized
For example:
A component is “composed of”
a small number of assets
of the same or different types

29. What are Game Objects?
Anything that has a representation in the game world
Characters, vehicles, missiles, cameras, trigger volumes, lights, etc.
Need for a standard ontology
Clarity
Uniformity
Feature, staff and tool mobility
Code reuse
Maintenance
E.g. use of modularity/inheritance reduces duplication
As a rule of thumb, if it has a position it can be a game object, although not all game objects have a position.
Most games try to devise a universal representation for their objects.

30. OBJECT Asset Sheets
Design stopping at the object level leads to the use of OBJECT Asset Sheets
Typically these are created by the development team
One for each object the designer has specified to be in a scene

31. Object Decomposition Example
Example: PAC-MAN Object
Script Component
Asset: Script for user interface motion control
Asset: Script for collision with walls
with food and points update
with ghosts and death (if not powered up) …
Image Component
Asset: Static Image for marketing
Asset: Static Image for menus
Animation Component
Asset: Image Sequence for Moving
Asset: Image Sequence for Dying
Sound Component
Asset: Sound for moving
Asset: Sound for eating
Asset: Sound for dying

32. Object Asset Lists To assist the team in planning tasks
The Team Lead creates Object Asset Lists
Example:
Object Asset Name

33. (object) Asset Lists To assist the team in planning tasks
The Team Lead creates Object Asset Lists
Example:
Object Asset Name
Objects
Are Composed of
Assets of Various Types

34. Object Asset Lists – Just ONE way
You can then use Object Asset Lists to generate Team Task lists
is Just One Way
It is not perfect
It illustrates how to
Link the Architecture and Design of the Game to the (late stage) Development of the Game
never forget about the people aspects
make the development of the design easy to plan and implement

35. Games as Systems
Interaction of formal and dramatic elements forms a game’s underlying system
Goal is to entertain participant
Achieve goal by creating structured conflict and providing entertaining process for players to resolve conflict
Formal elements, when set in motion, creates a dynamic experience in which players engage

36. System Dynamics Elements of system do not work in isolation
Test: removal of element must alter system
System is greater than the sum of its parts
Put in motion
Why is Tic Tac Toe so lame?
How would changes to properties and relationships affect Warcraft II?

37. Story answer the following questions. How is the exposition handled?
Who is the protagonist?
What is the main conflict and how and when is it introduced?
What does the protagonist do to resolve the conflict?
What causes the tension in the story to raise?
What deciding factor brings the story to a climax?
What happens in the resolution?

38. Gameplay Gameplay Includes
Collective strategies to reach end points of game theory
Specific to game activities
“What the player does”
Includes
Utility - A measure of desire associated with an outcome
Payoffs - The utility value for a given outcome
Preference - The bias of players towards utility

39. Gameplay Are the controls and mechanics clearly explained?
How is the goal stated and integrated with the main conflict of the story?
How does gameplay cause the dramatic tension to raise?
What deciding factor in gameplay brings the game to a climax?
What happens in the resolution?
Do the dramatic elements and gameplay elements help or hinder each other?
How can they be integrated to make the game work from an emotional standpoint?

40. Goals
We are a goal-drive species and find psychological reward in completing objectives.
If it takes too long to achieve a goal, player may get bored, so, create many simultaneous goals.
Player should always have at least one clear objective.

41. Dialog One picture worth a thousand words
Don’t have needless dialog when visual will do
Good dialog serves more than one purpose
Ex: telling about bomb. “How long?” Plenty of time … smoke cigarette, call mom … don’t read War and Peace. Reminds of mortality.
Don’t tell what know, but also reveal
“Do you expect me to talk?”
“No, Mr. Bond, I expect you to die”
Surprise

42. Game Interface
■ How do game interfaces relate to player-centered design?
■ What are the components of game interfaces?
■ What is the difference between a manual and visual interface?
■ What is the difference between a passive and an active interface?
■ Why is usability important in game interface design?

43. Player-Centered Design
What’s wrong with this picture?

44. Interface Types Manual (Physical)
Bass Fishing
Samba di Amigo
Dance Dance Revolution

45. Interface Types Visual Active
Puzzle Pirates
(radial/pie menu)
I Was an Atomic Mutant
(main menu)

46. Interface Types Visual Passive
True Crime: Streets of LA
(HUD = heads-up display)

47. Interface Types Visual Styles
Split-Screen
(Adventures of Fatman)
Whole Screen
(Myst III: Exile)
Invisible
(Black & White:
Creature Isle)

48. Visual Interface Components Score
Cyclone
Super Collapse

49. Visual Interface Components Lives & Power
Super Mario Sunshine
(Lives)
Tour de France
(Power)

50. Visual Interface Components Map
Age of Empires II:
The Age of Kings
Age of Mythology:
The Titans

51. Visual Interface Components Character
Character creation & management and character inventory interfaces
from The Temple of Elemental Evil

52. Visual Interface Components Start Screen
Crazy Bunker

53. Define A Color Scheme Color is a very important part of an interface.
What color is your game? This is a good question to answer early.
Anyone who looks at your interface should be able to see at a glance the color scheme of the entire game.

54. 3D Solutions & Challenges
3D interfaces can be very compelling and the idea of creating a 3D interface seems really cool. 3D interfaces can also be very expensive and time-consuming.
Making big changes to a 3D interface can be more difficult than making changes to a 2D interface.

55. Creating GUI Elements
Generally, we provide the player with a Graphical User Interface for the player to interact with the program. The menu we employ at the start-up of a game, change the setup, or quit – these screens are all examples of GUIs.

56. Know Your User Can we make any generalization about gamers?
Technical level?
Gender?
Other?

57. Know Your User's Tasks Tasks will vary per game
For example, what are the tasks:
in a puzzle game?
in a RTS?
in an MMO?
Multi-player games are interesting, as they combine aspects of instant messaging with other gameplay aspects
Communication is often a necessary task

58. Game
Audio Prototyping

59. Kicking Off Tasks - Audio
Sound list
Music specification
Story text
Voice-over script
Creation of sounds
Creation or licensing of music
Recording of voice-overs

60. Game Audio Overview
Like film audio, game audio is comprised of speech, sound effects and music
However, unlike film audio, the audio is interactive and must respond to changes in gameplay

61. Old-Gen Game Audio Workflow
Conventional methods before the current generation of game consoles (pre-2007) have required recompilation and game coder involvement to hear results which is typically slow:
Create
30 mins
Compile
5-30 mins
Run Game
3 mins
Locate
2-5 mins
Test
5 mins

62. Next-Gen Audio Prototyping
Allow sound designers to create their procedural sound designs in real-time while the game is running
Middleware solutions such as Wwise allow real- time tweaking of parameters, however only for existing patches and basic synthesis unless plugins are used
Use of Kismet within Unreal allows for some scripting

63. Process
What do you need to do to get your audio into the game? Over-prepare for the worst
What tools and resources are you going to use and what software will support your creative design? Work well with your coder & producer
A good process can be found by making all the right mistakes once and taking risks - exciting!
Audio is always last, so be prepared for feature drop, no money, no time & no love :)

64. Definitions Sound: compression waves transmitted through a medium
Wave: cycle of compression and rarefaction
Amplitude: measure of sound wave pressure
Coming soon: cool stuff

65. Common Frequency Ranges
Human Hearing: 20Hz – 20kHz
Human Voice: 90 – 300 Hz
Middle C: 261 Hz

66. Digital Sound
A “unit” of digital sound is called a sample
The sampling rate is the number of samples taken per second
Bit depth: size of sound sample data

67. When you’re Project Lead:
Create an audio asset list
“How many sounds can this make?”
“How often will we hear this?”
“How much music can/should we use?”
Excel spreadsheets are commonly used

68. Sound Design Critical is interactive audio component
Sound when event occurs (gunshot when trigger pulled, dialog when character spoken to, …)
Well done, sounds great. Poorly done, ruin all.
Need to avoid repetition
One footstep for 20+ hours of play annoying
Need 6-20 (depending upon budget)
Dynamics can help (pitch, volume, stereo…)
Mix pre-existing sounds with own sounds
Provides “custom” identity for game

69. Open Sound Control (OSC)
OSC is open-source software that allows communication between the game and PD
OSC is included in PD extended and just requires the addition of several C++ modules into the game engine
Access to the game events while the game is running

70. Audio Team Briefly, allow to see some roles
Book has details
Production both science (tech) and art
Three teams:
Music Team
Sound Design Team
Dialog Team

71. Music Team Composer Write custom music (writing, recording, mixing)
Contracted per-project basis
With larger budgets, 1 person will have assistants

72. Music Team Recording Engineer
Enables production of sound through mechanical means
Gets best sounds out of each component
Often work out of home
May often be a sound designer (coming next)

73. Sound Design Team Audio Director/Manager Sound Designer
Manage sound design teams
Keep track of resources and schedules
Execute vision of game producer on sound and dialog
Sound Designer
Bring life-like (and beyond life) sound to game
Critical member, as audio has more capability and more importance

74. Sound Design Team Implementer
Work with production tools to attach sounds to events, characters, etc.
“Level designers” of the audio department
Not too common (may often be “just” a programmer with no audio training), but increasingly more common

75. Dialog Team Voice Actors Dialog Editor
Provide voice for characters, animations, cut-scenes
Unionized (better but expensive) or non-unionized (cheaper, but less expensive)
Dialog Editor
Organize files created by voice actors
Master files, check for errors and submit assets to audio director
Often tedious, but critical

76. Spatialized Audio Making audio provide physical location clues
Mono – one channel, no chance for spatialization
Stereo – two channels, left and right, like the ear works
Different volumes create illusion of sounds in space
Gradual changes give illusion of “moving”
Surround sound – 5 main, 1 subwoofer
Usually, dialog center, music left and right and specialized sound effects behind
Environment can often affect
Bounce off walls, objects – door open and in next room?
Material matters (wood, metal, plastic)
Climate matters (temp, humidity)
Getting better (Creative Labs with Environmental eXtensions, EAX)